Sunday (Mom) Styles

The day after a night of cry it out is never a good day.  Last night was day 2 of the 40th or so round of cry it out since he’s been about 6 months old. We never get far because it’s only been since winter we’ve tried and the entire house has been sick pretty much all winter. Obviously I’m not a total monster so I don’t want him to cry when he’s sick.  And I wasn’t going to do anything when we went on vacation.  So here we are again except now he’s 10 months old and can stand at the rail and reach for me while he sobs. It’s awful.  But even more awful is me waking up every 2-3 hours to feed him and waking up trying to function the next day.  I love that kid and his cries make me want to throw up but I cannot function this way. The first night wasn’t terrible.  It didn’t feel good to hear him cry but he only woke up twice and fell back asleep after about 22 minutes (going in to reassure after 3, 5, 7, and 7 minutes).  Last night wasn’t bad either – a few sounds early on and then one wake up but took just as long to go back to sleep. Who knows what will happen tonight?

The other obnoxious thing about this morning is that I drank regular coffee yesterday which I almost never do and I’ve noticed that when I do that I wake up even more tired the next day. So this morning on top of feeling exhausted because of the baby, I felt foggy because somehow that one jolt of caffeine (okay two jolts) was enough to make me NEED it again this morning.

I suggested that since we had no clean dishes we should go out for breakfast.  We did. This is what I wore:

Except this is me after returning home so I had taken off my lululemon cape which I had spilled coffee on and then gave to the baby as a blanket in the car.

This glorious picture was captured by my daughter. The baby was coming over to eat my shoes. Why are you wearing that hat? My son asked me. You look like a farmer!

The hat is from JCrew about 3 and a half years ago. I don’t have a link to the hat but I do have a picture of me wearing the hat three years ago.  Yes those are pigtails. No I was not in costume (Kind of seeing the farmer reference now…):

Blazer – The oversized blazer from Everlane. I love this blazer – can you tell? I should probably get another jacket so I don’t wear this one every. single. day.

Shirt – Dolman top from my first Stitch Fix box. Apparently I didn’t mention brands in that first review so I have no idea. I know it was a good deal and I wear it constantly.

Jacket – My varsity jacket from high school. For Volleyball. I have worn it a handful of times – always a little self-conscious of the mustard yellow sleeves.  But now I think it’s kind of awesome and it’s getting me excited for my 15 year reunion coming up!

Jeans – Joe’s The Charlie high rise skinny ankle in Tania

Shoes – No. 6 5″ pull on shearling clog boots on high heel in molasses/hazel. I got these shoes last year when I noticed a few moms wearing them at school. I liked them and being me immediately had to have them.  They took a LONG time to break in and I still wonder if I shouldn’t have sized up even more. As it is I can only wear them barefoot or with stockings. Still they have broken in at this point and I live in them all winter on not wet or snowy days when it’s too cold to wear flats.

Bag – The Somerset mini backpack. My latest go-to bag fits a few odds and ends for the kids, my phone, wallet, small notebook, bottle of water, and whatever random things I grab on the way out. I am tempted – very tempted – to get the larger size too.  That way I wouldn’t also need to carry a diaper bag. At this point, great as my diaper bag is, I don’t need the pull-out changing pad (the kid’s getting changed on the floor or seat of the minivan) or the multiple pockets to hold various baby accoutrements. I’m not quite ready to get rid of the diaper bag…it’s just that I’ve been carrying one or another for the past 5 and a half years…

I realize that the last time I did a Sunday Mom Styles I laid out all my clothes so nicely and took pictures.  I just didn’t have time or energy to do that tonight.  I’m frankly impressed I had time or energy to do anything aside from sit on my tush and watch Divorce.

And now I’m going to sit on my tush and watch Divorce.

Until next time.

Escape from momville

There are many types of mother. I am of the suburban, stay-at-home variety and I can only speak for myself but some days I just need to escape. Of course an extended getaway would be impossible and so I have to find little ways to get a little alone time. Here is a list of some of the places I’ve gone to have some me time:

Target

Mall

Coffee shop

Bathroom (not always foolproof as any place within the four walls of the house is fair game to a child)

Supermarket

Those are my go-tos. Sadly, those places are dangerous places to be as every person with a wallet knows.  Even the bathroom because, let’s be honest, if i’m escaping into the bathroom for solitude I’m doing it with my phone and if I have my phone I’m either on Facebook or Amazon. Honestly, anywhere that sells things especially home things is a place I should not be left unattended.  A few weeks ago I went into HomeGoods to buy a birthday present and walked out with $100 in wrapping paper. Every Target experience is the same – go in with a small list (toothpaste, diapers, gallon sized ziploc bags) come out with something from literally every department because there’s never a wrong time to redecorate the powder room or stock up on crayons. At least when I go to Target I can feel good about myself for using the Cartwheel app and my red card. At least I know I’m getting a deal.  These days I can even feel good about myself at the mall because I earn rewards dollars at certain stores by shopping with my American Express.  (You earn the kind of dollars that only work when you spend even more dollars, but I’m willing to take any dollars someone is willing to give me for doing something I’d be doing anyway.)

Today I didn’t go to the mall and I didn’t go to Target (Well I did go to Target but mainly for a return and diapers. And boogie wipes, sippy cups, a diaper genie, wipes, puffs, and baby prunes.)  Today I decided to go to the little strip mall on Rt 10 with – brace yourselves – a Container Store, Shake Shack and drive-thru Starbucks.  Can you even?

I had two things on my list at the container store – a couple of stuffer things for my bags so they keep their shape and a few (3?) containers for the pantry to hold cereal or nuts or whatever.

And then I saw this display:

And so it came to pass that I walked up to the register with 11 containers for the pantry, 5 stuffer things, a bright pink plastic tote that I thought could be useful for holding files in my command center, a garment bag and two deluxe wedding dress garment bags. It’s a sickness. I literally cannot stop myself when I walk down the aisles of these places.  I was looking at the elfa closet systems despite not needing a closet system, a drawing table for the kids despite having 3 perfectly functional kid-sized tables downstairs, and pet food dispensers despite not having a pet. Everything is so attractively packaged and I’m just a sucker for good marketing. Yes, I buy books based on the cover, wine based on the label and just about anything with twine, burlap and a rustic font.

In the end, the wedding dress bags were a bit of a to-do because the system wouldn’t let the lady ring them up without entering a wedding registry code.  She had to call over a manager (who couldn’t help) and finally called the resource center.  15 minutes later I decided against spending $60 each (despite the fact that the dresses cost way more and it’s probably worth it to keep them in good condition…ah well, it’s always good to have a reason to go back…)

 

 

I had timed it all perfectly because I still had time to eat lunch before making my return at Target (factoring in the extra 30 minutes just for perusing the aisles ha ha) and picking up the boys. So I walked outside and actually, I’m ashamed to admit this but feel I must, drove my car over to the other side of the very small parking lot to this glorious structure:

I love this place.  There’s nothing to make a suburban stay-at-home mom feel like she’s still in her NYC glory days than a visit to Shake Shack.  Well anyway there’s nothing to make THIS suburban stay-at-home mom feel like she’s still in her NYC glory days because I spent my NYC glory days eating burgers and fries from Shake Shack. Anyway, this was my first time to this NJ location and I almost couldn’t contain my excitement when I walked in.  Grinning at the girl behind the counter I ordered a burger, fries, and why-the-hell-not-might-as-well-live-it-up a salted caramel milkshake.  (I go by the well-known rule that as long as you’re pregnant or breastfeeding you can eat literally all the food and you’re good.)

So I did.

And there you have it, folks.  That’s how I escaped today.  I had a lovely time buying things I wasn’t expecting and eating an entire meal without standing up to get someone seconds/milk/water/a napkin/that toy/fruit/dessert/more pasta or bending down to pick up some item the baby has thrown from his highchair.

What about you? Where do you go to escape?

Coming up…

Answers to your most pressing questions!

and!

A typical day in the life of…..me.